Triveni Terrace Cafe: Old School

Couple of months back, I got a chance to have lunch in this restaurant after visiting couple of art exhibitions at Triveni Kala Sangam at Mandi House. Since it was hot, I decided to sit inside (they also have terrace), where it was much comfortable. The interior of this restaurant is sparsely decorated and can seat about 16 people. A black board on the wall announces the specialties of the day . I found items like Gunpowder Ragi Idli, Apple Ki Pakodi, Kadu aur Moong Dal Ki Shaami, Shoodi Nu Muthiya and Mutton Yakhni.

I ordered a Shaami Kebab and Sabudhana Khichdi to start my meal. The Shaami Kebab was excellent and so was the coriander mint chutney which was served in a small pickling ceramic jar. I thought this kebab could probably be the best you can get in Delhi. It was tender, well marinated and not greasy at all!

The Sabudana Khichdi also was light and refreshing with with fried boiled potato chunks, peanuts, jeera and coriander. I ordered a Nimbu Pani to wash this down. Again, this had a hint of mint and served almost at the room temperature, but served as a great coolant for a hot summer day.

I ordered a Machli Kaliya as the main course. I was told that this is a Kerala style preparation using Tilapia fish. The fish curry was served with steamed rice. But, the fish curry had no semblance of any Kerala fish curry. The thick gravy had lot of onion and tomato, had three small pieces of fish in it.

The Kerala fish curry has two distinct tastes according to the way it is prepared – in one, the fish pieces are cooked in a spicy gravy which has s small quantity of sauteed Madras onion, curry leaves and ginger which is normally tempered with mustard and fenugreek seeds; and the second one is with coconut milk to round off the spices. In both the versions you use a savouring agent like sliced green mango (which I prefer) or kudampuli. Machli Kaliya was neither of these. Also, Tilapia is not an expensive fish. Hence, the quantity of fish they served in the curry surprised me.

I would still give this restaurant 4/5 for its character, innovative menu (with lot of options for vegetarians) and affordable prices!